Marathon Weekend 2023

[accm]

We've been going for a run with our son (almost 5) every weekend, and he doesn't seem to particularly enjoy it. But today, he did a 1km kids race, and ran the whole way with no complaining, ending with "that race was too easy for me".

He's signed up for the 5k, so I want to keep training with him, but I'm not sure how to make it fun. We always run to a playground (fun reward), and do a 30/30 run/walk. Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[FFigawi]

We've been going for a run with our son (almost 5) every weekend, and he doesn't seem to particularly enjoy it. But today, he did a 1km kids race, and ran the whole way with no complaining, ending with "that race was too easy for me".

He's signed up for the 5k, so I want to keep training with him, but I'm not sure how to make it fun. We always run to a playground (fun reward), and do a 30/30 run/walk. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Paging @DopeyBadger to the white courtesy phone. He’s done this with his daughter. I’m sure he’ll have plenty of advice for you.

 

[Barca33Runner]

We've been going for a run with our son (almost 5) every weekend, and he doesn't seem to particularly enjoy it. But today, he did a 1km kids race, and ran the whole way with no complaining, ending with "that race was too easy for me".

He's signed up for the 5k, so I want to keep training with him, but I'm not sure how to make it fun. We always run to a playground (fun reward), and do a 30/30 run/walk. Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[FFigawi]

SAFD: I remind myself that if I want to get through the tough moments during my race, I need to get through them in training. I’m basically teaching my brain that there‘s a world of difference between “I can’t do this anymore,“ and “I don’t want to do this anymore.”

 

[accm]

View attachment 687668

This is what I feel like I’m doing with the playground. But then he gets mad when he realizes we’re taking a longer way to get there.

 

[gosalyn_mallard]

We've been going for a run with our son (almost 5) every weekend, and he doesn't seem to particularly enjoy it. But today, he did a 1km kids race, and ran the whole way with no complaining, ending with "that race was too easy for me".

He's signed up for the 5k, so I want to keep training with him, but I'm not sure how to make it fun. We always run to a playground (fun reward), and do a 30/30 run/walk. Does anyone have any suggestions?

My youngest daughter did her first 5k at age 5. Distraction often worked well with her... playing word/letter/number games as we ran... any conversation to keep her mind off running. Also, she liked getting to choose our route herself. For our intervals, we counted mailboxes we past instead of making it time-based. On days where she really didn't want to run, we often comprised with her doing a bike ride while I ran. Good luck!

 

[NileNellie]

SAFD: This is probably weird, but I do math lol I figure out how far I have to go and then figure out how long that'll take given my current pace. My out and back also isn't generally even (I prefer to have the out be longer than the back), so I spend some time doing math to figure out when to turn around. On the way back, I also like to say "only" when thinking of the distance left. Somehow adding the word only in front of the number makes it seem not as far?
I've also picked up some mantra's from Peloton. My favourites while running are "I can do hard things" and "I don't have to, I get to".

I also do a lot of math! I run on a path with mile markers (out and back as well) so it really helps pass the time. On my long runs, I also keep telling myself "only this much further until my honey stinger" lol.

 

[dobball23]

I also do a lot of math! I run on a path with mile markers (out and back as well) so it really helps pass the time. On my long runs, I also keep telling myself "only this much further until my honey stinger" lol.

I'm a big math person as well. Numbers are constantly floating through my head, especially when I run. Having my Garmin and regularly checking my distance/pace, helps keep the numbers flowing.

 

[DopeyBadger]

We've been going for a run with our son (almost 5) every weekend, and he doesn't seem to particularly enjoy it. But today, he did a 1km kids race, and ran the whole way with no complaining, ending with "that race was too easy for me".

He's signed up for the 5k, so I want to keep training with him, but I'm not sure how to make it fun. We always run to a playground (fun reward), and do a 30/30 run/walk. Does anyone have any suggestions?

My daughter and I have been running together consistently for the last three years (she's 8 now). She did her first mile race at six and first 5k at eight. She's done three 5ks to date. For us, I want this to be something she wants to do long term, and not something I make her do. So we don't have a set schedule. When I get home from work I ask her if she wants to run. If she says no, then the conversation is over. I don't try and convince her because again I want her to want to do it. If she says yes, then other than doing 30/30 intervals I don't have a set distance goal. Rather I play it by on how she's responding during the run (her breathing, her running conversation, etc.). I'll have a maximum distance, but no minimum. During the run, I carry a conversation about her day, or unicorns, or fairies, or some far off planet she made up her in mind (Blorpia, they were saved by the Unicorns from planetary extinction to my recollection). The goal is just to do something, and to make the running itself fun. My wife has come up with ideas for incentivization (like we do for video games where she has to read to earn coins for VG time, my wife suggested running would earn her coins too), but I decided that's not the route I want to take this. Over time, she's wanted to run more and more on her own. And now that we've added in race day costumes (even at non-Disney races) it has increased her desire to continue racing. After the Princess 2022 5k, my daughter convinced my wife to postpone her idea of going to Hawaii in 2023 so that my daughter could go back to Disney do the Princess 2023 5k. The running hobby is now bridging into a cosplay hobby as we've been building her Ms. Marvel costume together.

I tried doing other intervals (45/30), but she immediately recognized a change to the routine. I tried taking her on a much different route, and she didn't like it. I tried doing 15/120 intervals with a focus on running as fast as possible, and she did like that one.

 

[GreatLakes]

Good Morning runDIsley All-Stars! Time for this week’s Sundays are for Disney. Question - How do you stay motivated during a really tough run? Share your tricks!

It depends on why the run was tough. If I just wasn't motivated and went out anyway I remind myself I've never been sorry I went for a run I started out not wanting to do. If I'm in the middle of a really big training block and I feel really fatigued I might not want to motivate myself and realize sometimes you need to listen to your body and add in a rest day.

 

[Cabius]

SAFD:

I thought I would be the only one to answer "I do math in my head" but it turns out a lot of y'all are real freaks too! Sometimes it's money math (I spent a half hour the other day trying to estimate the tax-optimal treatment of winning Mega Millions, assuming we intended to share the windfall with family and then give most of the rest away) and sometimes it's race/pace math. But I'm just smart enough that I find it fun, and just dumb enough that it's still challenging.

I'll occasionally try and do a Sudoku in my head, too, but I'm sure I cheat.

 

[Marebear_runs]

SAFD: I do a lot of mental math to distract me—mostly distances and time. I also read somewhere that when you’re struggling with a physical task like running, you can trick your brain by talking to yourself in the third person and that it’s more effective than making “I” statements. So I try to say things like “you’ve got this” or even address myself by first name. I wish I could remember what book it was, but I do remember it was an audiobook I was listening to while running, so I decided to give it a try.

 

[Baloo in MI]

We've been going for a run with our son (almost 5) every weekend, and he doesn't seem to particularly enjoy it. But today, he did a 1km kids race, and ran the whole way with no complaining, ending with "that race was too easy for me".

He's signed up for the 5k, so I want to keep training with him, but I'm not sure how to make it fun. We always run to a playground (fun reward), and do a 30/30 run/walk. Does anyone have any suggestions?

I have been running races with my daughter since she was 6. She is much older now and none of these things pertain for her anymore - in fact it has reversed!

I let her select the race, some of her favorites were a strawberry festival 5k that had a strawberry medal and the hot chocolate 5ks. That girl loved, still loves, hot chocolate!. But I found it meant more to her when she picked out the race.

I also let her set the pace, I would go so far as to run behind her so I was not influencing the speed. If she wanted to walk we would walk, if she wanted to stop and look at a duck we did it. I tried to focus on having fun and being positive. And when it got tough I would break out an energy gel. Honestly, for nothing more than she loved them and would get excited.

As she got older, and faster, I pushed more but always with positivity and left decisions to her. I treasure all those runs. She is 15 now and a varsity cross country runner; much faster than me! We have completed several 10ks, a 10 miler and a couple half marathons together. But now I get to take the lead, she has to go my pace and I think I will ask her if she has an energy gel to share. Maybe getting the packet out of her pocket will slow that girl down so I can keep up!

 

[Ariel484]

SAFD: This is probably weird, but I do math lol I figure out how far I have to go and then figure out how long that'll take given my current pace. My out and back also isn't generally even (I prefer to have the out be longer than the back), so I spend some time doing math to figure out when to turn around. On the way back, I also like to say "only" when thinking of the distance left. Somehow adding the word only in front of the number makes it seem not as far?
I've also picked up some mantra's from Peloton. My favourites while running are "I can do hard things" and "I don't have to, I get to".

Another member of the You Get To Crew! Always love to see another Jess Sims fan!

In response to your post and to SAFD, I'm digging the mantras "this is tough, but I'm tougher" and "what a privilege to move [my] body" lately, myself. Especially the privilege one since so many people were shut out of the races for 2023 - I'm sure there are a lot of people who would love to take my spot, so I try to keep that in mind if I don't feel like doing a training run on any given day.

In addition, as weird as it sounds, somehow just repeating the word "discipline" in my head over and over seems to help me for whatever reason. I use the math tricks others have mentioned as well ("I'm 10% of the way done, 20% of the way done, etc.") and I try to focus on what I'm training for - being well-prepared to run through Disney and have a fun race, which is often enough to get me through.

 

[gosalyn_mallard]

I am so impressed by you all who can do math in your head while running. I can barely think straight enough to add 2 + 2!

 

[sandam1]

I am so impressed by you all who can do math in your head while running. I can barely think straight enough to add 2 + 2!

Same here! I actually had to pull out my phone to double-check my math on my paces for my last long run. But then again, I don't do math well when I'm not running so...

 

[softballpooh]

I’m basically teaching my brain that there‘s a world of difference between “I can’t do this anymore,“ and “I don’t want to do this anymore.”

This right here is gold-- not only for my own personal running goals but also for teaching perseverance in general!! As the principal of a K-12 Virtual Academy, this will definitely be a part of our back to school programming.

 

[PrincessV]

SAFD: I make it so I don’t have to stay motivated - I do my long training runs as out and backs so I have no choice but to finish! I mean, in an emergency I could get a cab/Uber/call a neighbor to come get me, but that would really only be an emergency situation.

 

[marty3d]

SAFD: On long runs, I will also break down the course into milestones/ landmarks - I only focus on reaching the next one. And music - which is funny because I don't listen to music on runDisney races.

 

[Kerry1957]

I also do math in my head, although I can't seem to ever do simple calculations regarding paces on runs longer than 10-12 miles. My latest is to "calculate" prime numbers; the first 10 or 15 are pretty easy, but it can be a bit challenging for me once into 3 digits.